Cup-dispensing device.



H. NIAS.

CUP DISPENSING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED 11110.30. 1911.

1,058,787. Patented Apr. 15, 1913.

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UNITED STATES PATENT DFFIOE.

HENRY .NIAS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNQIR TO EPUBLIGSERVIGE CU]?COMPANY, OF

NEW YORK, N. [.Y.., A O0RP6RKTIDON'OF YORK.

CUB-.DISPXENSIN DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 15, 1913.

Application filed December '30, 1911. Serial No. 668,757.

York, in the county of Kings and State of,

New York, have invented, a certain new and useful Improvement inCup-Dispensing De: vices, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to dispensing devices for paper drinking cups andhas for its object to provide a device of the class speeified, simple inconstruction-and convenient v 1 Fingers ll, 12, 13 may be, of two ormore and reliable in operation.

The present invention is in the nature of an improvement on the deviceset forth in the application for Letters Batent of Emil A. Claus, SerialNo. 660,188, filed November 14, 1911, for-improvements in dispensingmachines for paper drinking cups. f

The particular feature 0 the present 1mprovement resides in the meansfor sustaining the column of cups and among other objects is directed toproviding means which engage more than one cup at a time In the drawingsaccompanying this specification Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly insection, of so much of a cupdispensing machine embodying my improvementas will serve to illustrate that improvement. Fig. 2 is an enlargedfragmentary sectional plan on line'2, 2 of Fi 1. Fig. 3 is a developedfront elevation o a portion of the cup sustaining means, and Fig. 4 is asectionalside elevation on an enlarged scale of a portion of what isshown in Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a front elevationand Fig. 6 is a sectionalside elevation similar to Figs. 3 and 4 respectively, and illustrating amodification of details of my improvement.

Supporting member 3 has cylindrical base 4 attached to its lower portionby bracket 5. Said base 4 is open at both ends and is provided withannular member 6 fixed therein, which if desired may support container 7on its upper edge. Said container is preferably cylindrical and open atits lower end. Cylindrical base 4' has side doorway 14 formed thereinand door 15 having bottom 16 is adapted to close thereover.

Annular holder, 6 is preferably of U- shaped cross section (Fig. 4),outer wall 8 i being higher than inner wall 9. Between said walls 8,9 ismounted support 10, formed of one continuous annular band if desired orof a plurality of pieces spaced apart or abutting end to end (Fig. 3).Said support 10, which is of less height than outer wall 8 and ofgreater height than inner wall 9, has

inwardly and preferably terminate in outwardly pointed hook-like endsas17. Said fingers as 11, 1'2, 13 are preferably of spring metal and ifthey are formed integral with support 10 the whole may be made v of likematerial and of one thickness.

lengths respectively and may vary more or less in the inward positionsof their ends as 17. I preferably arrange said fingers with their ends17 in three annular rows, each finger springing from the same plane oforigin on support 10 and terminating at three different heights in asmany planes parallel with the plane of origin. Also the fingers'of'onerow are preferably staggered circumferentially relatively to the fingersof. another row or other rows. Fingers 11, 11 are the shortest and havetheir ends 17 inreaching the least distance;

fingers 13, l3'are-the longest and have their en s 1 7 inreaching thegreatest distance; fingers 12, 12 are of a length between the len ths offingers 11 and 13 and have their en s 17 inreaching to between thepositions of the ends of 11 and 13. If made integral With and of thesame thickness as support 10, the shortest fingers, 11, will be thestif't'est, and the longest fingers, 13, will be the most flexible.

In the modification of Figs. 5 and 6 fingers 11, 12, 13 are illustratedas all of one length springing from different vertical positions onsupport 10 and therefore terminating at different vertical positions, inthis last feature being the same as the showing of Figs. 3 and 4. In thecase of the showing of Figs. 5 and'6, if fingers 11, 12,

13 are of the same thickness, they will be equally flexible. In usingthe device door 15 is "swung 'open with one hand by means of button 18,

and the bottom of cup 20 is seized by the other hand and drawndownwardly. This causes spring members 13 to yield outwardly and snapover flange 19 oflsaid cup and onto the body portion of the next cupabove.

Said cup 20 is thereby liberated and if the weight of the pileof cups issufficient, the

ing fingers for engaging succeeding cup is forced downwardly pastsprings 12 until its flange engages upwardly turned ends 17 of springs13 as shown by cup 20. If the pile of cups has been so nearly exhaustedthat its weight is insufiicient to move the cups downwardly when thebottom cup is withdrawn, then when the next cup is removed it will bedrawn downwardly successively past two or more rows of fingers andthence from the machine.

\ I claim:

1. A cup-dispensing combination a plurality of inwardly reachandsupporting the cups, said fingers having their cup-engaging portionssituated in a plurality of planes parallel with their plane of origin,the fingers having their cup-engagin portions in one plane Varying instrength roin those device. including in having their cup-engagingportions in another plane. i

2. A cup-dispensing combination a plurality of inwardly reaching fingersfor engaging and supporting the cups, said fingers having theircup-engaging portions situated in a plurality of planes parallel withtheir plane of origin, those fingers having their cup-engaging portionsin one plane being staggered circumferentially relatively to thosefingers having their cup-engaging portions in another device includingin plane.

Signed this 26th day of December, 1911,

at New York, New York, before two subscribing witnesses.

HENRY NIAS. Witnesses J ULIUS GOLD, HERMAN ELSAS.

